JOD: Forge of Refinement
by DinoWriter23
Summary: Jason has lost the ability to use his Keyblade, and Madsane has gained his hands on the Tesseract and scattered his friends to the winds. Now he must make new allies and find a way to fight the crazy scientist before it's too late. But can the new heroes survive the demanding trials that lie ahead, or will they break under the pressure? Cover done by Flautist4ever
1. Getting back up

**Okay everyone. Welcome back to the JOD story. I wasn't planning on starting this one first, but things ended up working out this way. **

**I don't own Kingdom Hearts and/or Disney.**

**Jason is mine.**

**Mortem belongs to YamiChaos27. Yami also did the segment with his character, with some editing from me. All credit for that part of the chapter goes to him. **

* * *

Chapter 1: Getting back up

JASON'S POV

SAARIN 10, 92 KA…

Oh, my head. Felt like the kaiju had a dance party inside my skull. As I sat up from where I was I noticed several black bags lying around me, all covered with bumps and looking like they had various items inside. Wait a minute. I knew those kinds of barrels. Trash cans. Oh, come on. I was in a trash alley?

Getting up I brushed some pieces of trash off my blue jacket and stepped out to get an idea of where I was. The buildings, the trains, the clock tower. My eyes widened as I recognized this place. "Twilight Town," The name slipped out of my mouth as I looked around. I hadn't spent long here, but it had been thanks to Scrooge that this world had become important.

As I made my way down the sloped path I thought about what had transpired. Worbazz, I was so stupid. Why didn't I make sure Clair destroyed that stupid cube when we had the chance? We made our enemy stronger without intending to, and now Scrooge and Clair were lost to who knows where? Even Jiminy was gone, and I had been unable to do anything to stop it.

I thought of heading to the Bistro that Scrooge owned, but I paused at that. How could I go around people when I had been used as a weapon not long ago to hurt others? It felt unreal that I had been forced to hurt others. How many people were now dead because my mind had been turned off on a madman's whim? Was I even a person?

Or was I a weapon?

Turning away in the main square I headed further into Twilight Town trying to find somewhere I could be alone. Well, more alone than I already was. I missed my friends so much, but I had no way to find them. What was I going to do?

Turning down another alley, I noticed a little more dirt and grime on the walls and street. There were fewer people here, so I could tell I wouldn't be disturbed. At the end of this alley was a huge gaping hole in the ground which probably led to the sewers. Last place anyone would look for me.

Jumping down inside I headed deeper until I couldn't see the light anymore. There, I sat down on the ground and buried my face into my knees. What now? I had no Keyblade, no way of getting around the other worlds, or of even fighting Madsane. Especially not when he can take control of me on a whim.

"Why are you sitting here?" A voice then asked.

Not bothering to look up to see who it was, I just said, "My problems."

"Sitting in the sewers doesn't seem like the best way to fix them. What happened to the boy trying to learn who he was?"

"I found out who I… wait. How do you know what I was… Maslih?!"

Not lying. Standing over me was the mysterious armored figure I had met before in what had seemed like the afterlife. His armor was still golden with a magnificent cape that gave a regal air to him, and his helmet was still in the form of a lion. No, an eagle. Ugh. Magic.

I was surprised when he took a seat next to me. "Jason, tell me."

I was not the type of person to open up to anyone, though my travels I had learned to do otherwise. Plus for some reason Maslih just felt like a person who understood me unlike anyone else, so I began to tell him what happened. I told him about how we learned our world's leader was actually our enemy, how he ended up with the Tesseract we were supposed to have destroyed, how I ended up being used to hurt others, and how I could no longer call my Keyblade to me.

I wouldn't have blamed him if he had spoken harshly about what had happened, or even told me I deserved it.

"What would you tell me to do?" He asked.

Okay, I admit that caught me off guard. I was not expecting him to ask me a question like that. "Maslih? I don't understand."

"If I was in your situation, what would you tell me to do?"

"Why are you asking me?"

"Jason."

Somehow, I got the impression that I wouldn't get anywhere unless I answered his question. Come on. Think. "I… I guess I'd say what are you going to do about it? I mean, moping around isn't going to fix the problem-"

"Then why did you come here to mope?" Even though I couldn't see his face I could tell Maslih was concerned. "Jason, I know this is hard, but in life you will be expected to face many hard things. It is tempting to give up when life punches you in the face, but that will not help you become better. If you truly wish to make things right in your life, then you must learn to get back up when it is hard. Never give up. Do you understand?"

"But, my friends-"

"Are alive." That got me to my feet, but the armored figure kept speaking. "Each of you must now embark on your own journey to become the heroes you need to be. For now, know that I am watching them just as I am watching you, Jason Norman. What will you do now?"

"First thing I need to do is figure out how to get my Keyblade back. Without it I can't fight against Madsane."

"You didn't need it before. Why do you think you need it now?"

"I cannot fight the Heartless without a Keyblade."

"There are many who disagree. Many who have never held a Keyblade, and yet choose to fight the Heartless. If they can clash with such enemies, then why are you not able to?"

Hey, he's right. I did fight before I had my Keyblade. Though when I first encountered the Heartless I only survived because my weapon came to me. If I were to… wait. The Radiant Garden Restoration Committee. They can help.

First I had to get back there.

"There's lots of help in this town to get you back to Radiant Garden, Jason." It seemed like Maslih was smiling under his helm. "And now you have the advantage of working in secret. Now, I believe it is time for someone to wake up."

Huh? Now I was confused. Before I could ask him I heard someone groaning in my pocket. Reaching in, I was surprised to pull out a familiar face. "Jiminy?!"

My appointed conscience let out a yawn before looking at me. "Jason. Are you okay? I mean-" His words got cut off as I held him close in a hug. Hey, the little guy had been there for me through thick and thin.

Eventually I lifted him up to my face. "J-Jiminy? Did I… hurt you?"

"... You threw me away like a piece of lint." He looked down.

"I'm so sorry Jiminy. I was-"

"I know you weren't yourself Jason. I've been with you long enough to know that you wouldn't throw me away of your own choice. That action is on Madsane, not you."

"How did you get back to me?"

"Well, while you were fighting your cousin I moved from her pocket to yours. Wait a minute. Where are we? Last thing I remembered was you finally woke up from your mind control."

"Twilight Town."

He did a double take. "Wait. Isn't that where-"

"Yeah, but what we need to do now is find the Old Mansion. We need to call for a ride to Radiant Garden." 

* * *

MORTEM'S POV

I found myself panting with exhaustion and pain after another session of practicing with my mutation. Damn this thing is strenuous. My arm hurt like hell, I had a massive headache, and I was so tired that I collapsed on my knees. This power was proving difficult to get the hang of. My arm emitted red sparks as it reverted back to normal again.

"Are you sure you should be using that thing?" Leroy asked me. "It's clearly quite hazardous to you as much as it is to your enemies."

I gave him a firm gaze. "If I don't get a handle on this… virus or whatever it is, it could take me over without warning."

"Maybe… but you really shouldn't push yourself. Even my, and my cousin's, lifting strength has limits, and we were engineered. You're only human, and while you are strong, you're not invincible. And this just doesn't seem like a power you should be using very often if it puts this much strain on you."

I grumbled in response realizing his point. "If nothing else, this will serve as a good last resort option." I looked at my arm, and thought about his talk about limits. If that nosy drone we encountered on Harthyrn was telling the truth, it would seem that my limits have dwindled since Madsane found me. I couldn't help but wonder if that was why I'm having such a hard time now. I'm certain I had used this power before, but did I have this much trouble before? I know that since I had only just reawakened it I had probably just grown unaccustomed to it, but still. "Whatever the case, I can't afford to take any chances. I want to make sure I can control this power well enough before I attempt to nab any of the remaining princesses' hearts."

"Do what you want. But just know that you won't be able to reclaim your memories or get back at Madsane if you strain yourself too much."

I looked at him as a question came to mind. "You know, I've been wondering something. Why are you still siding with me? Wasn't that loon the one who made you accompany me on my mission in the first place?"

"Yeah. But one can only listen to Jailhouse Rock so many times. It's much more fun causing mayhem with you than with that old coot."

"I'm not interested in mayhem! I just want to see that wretched fossil destroyed, and my memories back! If you are going to be a problem-."

"Relax!" the monster said. "I'm sure with the Guardians now fully aware of what we know about Madsane, I'm sure they'll figure out a way to help us give him exactly what's coming to him, whether they do it knowingly or not."

As he said that I could help but think back to my conversation with the Guardians.

FOUR HOURS EARLIER…

I had left Leroy in the caverns at the outskirts of town with the magic locket as a precaution so that they didn't try to take the pure hearts from me while I still needed them. I approached the guards who had instantly readied themselves for combat, not that I blamed them. I tried to assure them that I was only here to offer the Guardians of Light information. Unsurprisingly, they were skeptical, but they agreed to call the Keybearers when I told them that Kairi didn't have to attend so that they wouldn't have to worry about me taking her heart. So here I was, sitting in the library of Radiant Garden castle with Namine drawing her pictures, the castle guards staring intently at me with their weapons out, and the scientists, including Ansem himself, gazing at me with caution and curiosity.

As we waited for the Guardians to arrive, I looked at the pictures on the table, and I couldn't help but feel annoyed at how some of them depicted events that happened to me recently. The vision I had about a mad doctor from my past, beheading Red Skull, the Unversed I summoned using Jason's darkness. There was even stuff that happened in Harthyrn, like the mysterious drone that seemed to know me, the caging of the berserk clone children, my fight with Jason, and my mutation which included a disembodied face that I assume was supposed to depict the voice I was hearing. It seemed that she really was using her memory powers to keep track of what was going on with me.

I found myself so uncomfortable with this that I just couldn't help but voice my opinion. "Did you really have to have all these drawings out? It's disturbing, knowing that you're drawing things depicting my life."

The blond girl looked at me with a somewhat sheepish expression. "Sorry you feel that way. I'm just trying to understand the people connected to Sora and Kairi's hearts so that we can better help them in their struggles. I do it for Jason and Clair too."

I still don't get what they mean by 'connected to their hearts', or how a couple of encounters with them apparently gave me a weak connection to them yet just strong enough to allow Blondie to view my memories. I scoffed at her. "And how exactly could you possibly help me?"

"Well, maybe we could figure it out if you'd just let us help you instead of stealing other people's hearts."

"Fat chance! I already know your 'memory manipulating' powers won't work on me for whatever reason, so as far as I'm concerned you're useless to me."

Her expression seemed to sadden in response, which I felt a sting in my heart at the sight for some reason. "It doesn't have to be this way, you know."

"Well tough luck! Things almost never seem to go my way because other people keep screwing me over. Why should I trust you and the Guardians not to do the same? I can't trust anyone to do anything for me!"

Namine was silent for a moment before she suddenly giggled. "Well, you seem to trust Leroy well enough, at least." My eye twitched with annoyance as I couldn't think of a response to that. Truthfully, I wasn't sure why I trusted him. All I could do was stare at that face of hers, the one that reminded me of Silverhead. And after a minute it seemed that she read my mind. "Thinking about that girl again?" she said almost smugly.

I grumbled in response but something compelled me to answer. "I just can't figure out why three different people seem to share her face. Is there a story behind that for you three?"

Namine thought for a moment before responding. "Well, of the three of us, Kairi is the original. I was her Nobody, born under... special circumstances, but I had developed my own heart, distinct from hers. And Xion was originally a Replica created from Sora's memories of Kairi, but like me developed a heart of her own."

Well, that was interesting to hear, but it still left one. "And you have no idea how Silverhead fits into all this?"

She frowned. "I'm sorry… We just don't have enough information to even come up with a theory right now. All I'm certain of about her is that she plays a very important part of your life."

I sighed in exasperation. I was right! These guys are useless! And they think they can help me? I'm better off sticking to capturing the princesses. I'd have probably just left right then if I didn't need them to get back at Madsane.

Just then, the Guardians of Light finally decided to show up. Terra, Aqua, Ventus, Lea, Isa, Roxas, Xion, Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Riku, Sora, and… surprisingly Kairi. They all gave me a firm stare.

Glancing at the princess, I said, "Well aren't you bold, Keyblade Princess? I'm surprised you actually had the nerve to show up, despite me clearly stating you didn't have to."

The crimson head shrugged. "I guess I trusted you enough not to break your word that you wouldn't try to take my heart this time." Well, I suppose her trust was valid in that regard. One thing I refuse to make myself is a liar. When I give my word, I have every intention of sticking to it.

"Well, I'm touched that you actually trusted me at all."

Both Sora and Riku stood in front of Kairi protectively, which was understandable. "Alright, Mortem," Riku spoke while pointing his Keyblade at me. "Out with it! What do you want?"

"Relax! I just wanna share some vital information with you, and then I'll be out of your hair… for now at least, don't think this means I've given up."

"And why should we trust whatever you have to say?" asked Roxas.

"If you can't take my word for it, then ask Namine. She's looked into my memories of these events." Everyone looked at the memory witch, who promptly nodded.

Mickey then came forward. "So what is it you wish to share?"

"First I need to ask: What do you know about Anton Yeller, aka Doctor Madsane?"

"Not much." Riku said. "Mostly what Leon, Cid and Merlin told us. He seemed friendly up front, but something seemed… off to me."

"You'd be right to be suspicious of him," I told him. "That device that he claimed was supposed to bring Jason and Clair back home, the one I destroyed, Yeller was the one who sent me to destroy it."

Everyone looked taken aback by this. Sora was the one to ask the obvious question. "But why would he do such a thing?"

"Would it help if I told you that that device was never meant to work in the first place?" A watched them process what I said to see what conclusions they would draw to. Everyone had a thoughtful look on their face, some twisted into either anger or confusion.

One of the scientists, Even I believe his name was, then spoke. "I thought those blueprints he sent looked unusual."

Another scientist, I believe Ienzo, added, "I was confused as to how it would work."

"So are you saying that this Yeller person never intended for them to return home?" asked Ventus.

"Exactly," I replied. "He had already lied to his people that Jason and Clair were dead. They practically worship him like a god in human form, so anything he claims they'll buy. He gave them fake schematics to give them false hope, and then had me destroy the device just to cover his tracks. He didn't even tell me that it was his design nor that it wouldn't have worked anyways." I had my fist clenched in anger, subtly letting them know that I despise being used like that.

Terra grunted in anger. "That kind of deception is really reminding me of Xehanort right now."

"Funny you should mention that," I said, "because apparently before his demise, Xehanort actually made contact with Yeller."

"WHAT!" everyone yelled at the same time.

I then proceeded to tell them what happened on Harthyrn. About the doctor's deception, the Tesseract, what he did to Jason and Clair, and his Neo Thirteen. I left out my encounter with the mysterious drone, the caging of the berserk children, and my mutation, though I had feeling Namine would tell them about those later.

The mouse king held a hand over his eyes. "Gosh. All those poor people."

"I can't believe someone would do something so cruel to his own people." Xion looked at her friends for comfort. Something told me that, being a Replica, hearing about clones going on a rampage as a result of their creator's programing might've unsettled her greatly. I also noticed Kairi position her hands over her heart before the Hero of Light put an arm around her.

Balling his hands into fists, Riku said, "We should've seen it sooner. We should've known that Xehanort would've had a backup plan, and would've made contact with someone else in case something unexpected happened."

"Nothing we can do about it now." Aqua said. "We can't change what happened, but we can work to stop him now."

"Yeah." Terra agreed with her. "We won't let that scientist ruin the worlds like Xehanort did."

"All for one, and one for all." The duck wizard also smiled.

Then Ansem himself approached me with a stern expression. "Why are you willing to share this information with us?"

I looked at the old man and replied, "I have my reasons. All you need to know is that Leroy and I have cut our ties to that bastard, and he's currently number one on my revenge list. I just need you to be on alert and fight Madsane and his Neo Thirteen whenever you can. And if possible, figure out a way to tarnish that fraud's reputation with his people, so that when I kill him he doesn't die a martyr! But don't get the wrong idea! This doesn't make us allies. I still need the princesses' hearts, and I know you will still get in my way. I just figured the more enemies he has the better it is for me."

"Right!" Lea said as he rolled his eyes. "We're just a means to an end, aren't we?"

"Be thankful that unlike the likes of that mad doctor, I'm more upfront about my intentions."

Isa then spoke. "What I'm wondering is, why did he send you after the seven hearts in the first place? I doubt he actually wanted you to recover your memories, and probably didn't even think it would actually work."

He had a point there. I never did question what the doctor would get out of it. I was too focused on what they could do for me that it never crossed my mind. "He never told me. Not that it matters because he's not getting them! I'd send him burning in the depths of Inferno if he ever tried to take them from me!" What was this 'Inferno' that slipped from my tongue?

"Now, now. Watch the mouth. We have ladies present." Lea quipped as he looked at me. "Besides, I'm the master of burning things. Got it memorized?"

"Lately the only thing you've been able to fry is your food." Isa deadpanned at him.

The pyro then looked at him. "Come on. Give me a little credit. I still take care of any stray Heartless."

"With Roxas and Xion."

"Hey, it's a team effort."

I rolled my eyes before opening a dark corridor behind me. "Well, I've said everything I came here to say, so I'm out of here. You all just be on your guard and do what you will."

I turned toward the portal, but before I could enter, Namine grabbed my attention. "Wait! Just one more thing before you go!" I turned toward her and saw that she was holding one of her drawings. This drawing was depicting a very familiar object. "I highly recommend that you keep this close. I have a feeling it means something to you."

I stared at it for a moment before grumbling. "Whatever." And with that I left.

PRESENT…

All in all, the meeting went pretty smoothly. Hopefully those Keyblade Meddlers will do what they do best towards Madsane.

Still, I couldn't help but think about what Isa mentioned. "Leroy, why do you think the loon sent me after the pure hearts? Something tells me he never intended for me to actually recover my memories."

The monster thought for a moment. "Hard to say. It could've just been an excuse to use you as a distraction for Jason and Clair, while at the same time testing them as Neo Thirteen candidates." Yet another instance of him using me as a tool. "But on the other hand, he could've had his own plans for them. What these plans could be is anyone's guess."

I sighed. "Well whatever the case, he won't have them. Not only do I still need them, but I won't allow him to gain such an asset."

"If you say so. By the way, what do you want me to call you?"

"Excuse me?"

"That drone called you Cain. So do you want me to start calling you Cain?"

I thought for a moment before shaking my head. "No. At least not until I know for certain what that name means to me." After all, whether or not it is indeed a name I went by before Madsane gave me the codename Mortem, I was uncertain at this time whether it was my first name, last name, or some other alias. So until I remember my name legitimately, I'd rather stick with Mortem for now.

Leroy shrugged. "Suit yourself. You should probably take a break from this training. Like I said, your mission will be for naught if you strain yourself too much."

As the red monster lied down lazily, I couldn't help but think back to my exchanges with Namine, which were interesting to say the least. Learning about the reasons why she and Xion shared Kairi's face was enlightening, but the fact that she still had nothing on Silverhead was frustrating. And then there was that drawing she showed me.

I pulled out the object that was depicted in that drawing. I've had this thing in my pocket since I was found by the doctor, but thanks to my memory loss, I could not for the life of me figure out what it was or why I have it. At first sight, it just looked like a piece of junk, which I felt of pang of guilt for even thinking that for some reason. Normally, I'd throw something like this away, but for reasons I couldn't fathom, I just could not bring myself to do it. The way Namine told me how she believed this thing means something to me… I couldn't help but wonder if she had an idea what it could be.

I sighed. No sense dwelling on it now. If it really is that important, I'm sure I'll remember where I got it from as I capture the princesses. I put the object back in my pocket as I decided to take Leroy's advice and rest up for now.

* * *

**Next time we'll get to the path that has to be taken to get back on their feet, and prepare them for the challenges that are coming their way.**

**EDIT 3/18/20: Added a scene of Jason reuniting with Jiminy. Fixed some formatting and grammar. **


	2. Finding a new path

**I apologize for the hiatus. I was working on trying to get three chapters written before I posted the next one. I may have to wait a little bit while I work with Flautist4ever on the story for her characters. At any rate, please enjoy.**

**I do not own Kingdom Hearts, Square Enix, and/or Disney.**

**Jason and Aurora are mine. **

* * *

Chapter 2

JASON'S POV

SAARIN 12, 92 KA…

Radiant Garden…

I let out a sigh as we finally landed back in Radiant Garden. It was a surprise to see the city looking so good. Were the repairs now complete? It sure seemed that way.

"Feels good to be back, doesn't it?" A familiar voice asked. Turning, I smiled at my friend and mentor Scrooge out when he got blasted by the Tesseract he had been sent to Radiant Garden and had been able to call the Gummi back to him. Then when I made myself known on Twilight Town he wasted no time coming to get me.

With a nod, I said, "You said everyone was trying to figure out what to do, right?"

"Aye. Last I checked they were trying to figure out a plan to combat Madsane and his Neo-Thirteen. With ye there might be hope. Now, don't you start moping about just because ye lost yer Keyblade. We'll set this whole thing right."

My conscience then spoke up. "Scrooge is right. Everything will work out for the better. You just need to have faith."

With an understanding nod the three of us made our way through to the castle. I noticed more gardens had been planted, and there were fountains shooting out water works that children were playing in. I was glad they could have fun despite all the chaos that was going on.

As we approached the main gates the guards prepared to block our way when they did a double take. "Scrooge? You were successful?"

"Of course I was successful, Dilan. I'm Scrooge McDuck." My mentor smiled as we were allowed past. We managed to make our way through the castle into a large chamber that could've served as a barracks. There we found everyone deep in discussion about the crisis at hand.

It was Riku who first noticed our presence. "Scrooge. You did it."

"Jiminy's here too… wait a moment!" I couldn't believe who I was seeing in the crowd. I knew her anywhere, green shirt shirt with purple lines and purple and black pants. "Aurora?"

Brushing some highlighted strands of purple hair out of her face my rival looked at me. "Look what the trash dragged in."

"What are you doing here?"

"Trying to get out of here. These people are saying because I have some strange weapon that I can help fight back against these monsters and Doctor Madsane."

"Weapon? Wait. You don't mean-"

With that she held out her hand and in a flash a Keyblade appeared in her grip. It was a relatively simple design, with a guard shaped like a pair of folding bat wings around the hilt. The blade itself was beige while the teeth were shaped like a green snarling dragon's head. That brought back memories of the Mystic Library. "It's different from what you tried to kill me with, but I get that it's the same type of weapon."

"Aurora, I-"

"Save it." She said as she pointed her weapon at me. "I think I'm owed some payback for when you almost killed me."

Before she could take a step Riku got between us and used his Keyblade to block hers. "Enough. No one is taking revenge on anyone. The enemy is Madsane and we need to focus on stopping him."

"Riku is right." Merlin agreed as he stroked his long white beard. "While Clair is still missing I believe it would be in our best interest for Jason to train Aurora in how to use her-"

"No." I said. "I cannot teach her."

"Why not?" My rival frowned at me.

"I just can't."

"What? Don't want me cramping your style?"

"No."

"Oh, I know you, Jason Duncan Norman. You can't handle it when someone can do something that you can, so you throw a fit. Well, guess wha-"

"I can't use mine anymore!" I finally blurted out, earning gasps from several people in the room. "Because of what happened that night… my actions… my Keyblade left me. I've tried to call it forth, but no matter what it doesn't respond to me. I'm not worthy of it now."

There was silence for several minutes while everyone processed my words. I could tell I had thrown an unexpected problem into their midst. Not wanting to be burdened with pity I turned to leave. "Jason? What are you doing?" I heard the Cetra ask.

"Leaving. I can't help you right now."

"Running away isn't going to solve the problem. If you want to help, then you need to stand with us even when it's hard for you." The silver-haired Keyblade master told me.

"Riku is right, Jason." Jiminy said. "It's tempting to take the easy path, but the better rewards come from pushing through the hard trail."

Reluctantly I ended up staying even though I didn't give much input during our debates. I did join in when I learned Mortem had been there to warn about Madsane, but had refused to help. Why wasn't I surprised? I did agree with what he had said that the mad scientist had to be stopped.

During our discussions they also brought Aurora up to speed on the workings of the universe. Riku and Sora explained that the weapon my rival now carried was a Keyblade, a weapon of great power that could either hinder the darkness or let it run rampant. Her eyes went wide when she was told we existed in a multiverse, that every plane of existence used to be one until they were divided eons ago as a result of the Keyblade War.

I listened while Terra, Aqua, and Ven explained the Keyblade War as an old conflict between bearers who chose light or darkness, and when the ensuing battle had brought about doomsday. Kairi then explained that seven lights survived the resulting darkness, and with their power brought existence back before dividing their world into countless parallel ones to prevent such a disaster from occuring again.

Aurora leaned back in her seat while she mused over what we told her. "This sounds like the convoluted plot of a video game."

"I know the feeling, but it's all real." I said.

"I know. I faced the Heartless on Harthyn."

That took me by surprise. "Heartless? On Harthyn?"

Aurora then began to explain what happened to her. Apparently after I tried to kill her she fled to the MacBays when they were attacked. During the conflict a Keyblade came to her, but it wasn't enough. My eyes widened as I heard about the carnage and the chaos that erupted in our world after that. Must've been after I had been banished via the Tesseract. "Then, it was like Harthyn had been shattered and I was attacked by one of those things. I was able to defeat it, but…"

"We noticed a star go out not long before we found you." Merlin said as he looked down. "Jason. Aurora. I'm afraid the Heartless have consumed your world."

I swear my blood froze, and did time freeze? "Consumed? You mean…?"

"I'm sorry. I know what you're going through." Sora said. "The same thing happened to my friends and I years ago, but we were able to reverse it."

I wanted to snap at him, tell him he had no idea what I was going through. I clenched my fists while I tried to keep my emotions in check. Losing my temper was not going to fix our problems. "... It doesn't matter now. We need to focus on stopping Madsane."

"Maybe, but it's not what you want." Aurora frowned. "Right now you want nothing more than to attack someone, to hurt them in an effort to ease the pain you're feeling. I know you too well."

"That's not who I am anymore!"

"I don't believe you."

"Aurora!" Aqua snapped. "That's not helping the situation."

"Right now you're the only one who has the least experience, Aurora Kara. If you want people to teach you, to train you to use that thing, then you need to stop acting so high and mighty and accept-"

"I don't need anyone's help, especially yours. And didn't you just say you can't use one of these things anymore? Seems like you're the one who needs help, and I'm not sure I'm inclined to help you. All you've done is hurt everyone you've come in contact with. Maybe your Keyblade left you because it realized you were a waste of time and genetics. Your parents made a mistake when they paid for you to be created."

That did it. If I stayed any longer I was going to lose it, and I'd only prove her right. Still some words escaped my lips. "This is bigger than us, Aurora! There are countless people who are in danger, and you have the power to do something. Yet all you care about is yourself and proving yourself right. Maybe your Keyblade made a mistake in choosing you!"

With that, I turned and stormed out of the meeting. As I did Aurora got the last word. "At least I didn't forget who to look out for. Me. That way no one can hurt me unlike you. You know why? Because you are a loser!"

As I left the castle and headed into the streets, I could feel my anger inside me. That girl always manages to get under my skin, but just blowing off countless worlds because she doesn't want to help? There were times when I wish she had been taken out with the rest of her country, and saved us all the grief.

And what she said reminded me of… the traitors. Steven. Alan. Noah. The people I thought had been my friends only for them to turn their backs on me. All because I lost some fights to her and that Axel, and they decided I was weak and not worthy of their association. Taking in a breath I reflected on my past experiences. What was really different about me now?

Had I even changed at all from who I used to be?

As I exited the city walls I found myself staring out over a canyon with blue and purple rocks. It would've been breathtaking if Aurora's words hadn't cut me so deeply. Heading over to the mouth I let out a cry as I punched the stone. That made my hand hurt, but I didn't care. I just punched it again and again to try and force my pain and anger out of my system.

"What are you doing?" Jiminy asked from my shoulder. "I've been trying to talk to you for ages and you didn't say a word."

I had managed to get several punches in, and my blood was beginning to cool so I felt okay talking. "I'm just trying to vent my anger without getting into a needless fight. If I had stayed any longer that's what would've happened."

"You would've hit her?"

"... In the past yes." I could tell I had just said something I shouldn't have because my conscience went pale. "Jiminy, I know I haven't been a good person, and there's still so much I don't understand about right and wrong. You've done a great job teaching me, but right now I'm wondering if I'm any different from when I first came to Radiant Garden."

"You are. You've grown so much from when I first met you. What would the old you have done in that situation?"

"I would've gotten into a fight with her."

"Then why didn't you?"

"I didn't want to give her satisfaction by proving her right. That's probably a selfish reason, isn't it?"

"It's using your head." The conscience explained. "You realized that you weren't going to last in that situation so you got out of there. You didn't let yourself give in to your temptations. I see that as tremendous growth." That made me smile for a moment before he asked, "Why was it you were getting upset at Aurora?"

"She was acting like she was right, and the entire universe needed to bow to her ideas." I felt my anger flaring up, so I took a couple of deep breaths before I answered again. "I guess… I saw the old me in her words. Only thinking about herself, and ignoring the bigger picture. When I did that I almost ended up dead. I guess… I'm scared she'll end up that way, and I can't do anything to help her."

"I wouldn't say that." A new voice said. Turning, I saw the familiar face of Tifa Lockhart not far from where I was venting my anger. Still dressed in the same black outfit I saw her in before, she walked up to me and took a seat on a boulder. "That wall given way yet?"

"What do you want?" I remembered how she refused to teach me when I asked her way back when. Seems like eons ago.

"Just wanted to check on you. Heard you left the castle in a foul mood."

"You heard right. Just got a reminder of…" I trailed off because I didn't know how to phrase it. Tifa was cool, but I only spoke with her that one time. So yeah.

She managed to find the words though. "A shameful past." As I gave a nod to her words I was surprised to see her hand me a familiar blue treat. "Sea salt ice cream always makes things better."

Accepting the snack from her I began to eat while she asked me more questions. Jiminy helped me explain what was going on regarding Aurora and I. I told her about how we had been fighting since we were kids, and how her words were reminding me of my own actions. She just sat there and listened while eating her ice cream.

When I finished she looked at the sky like she was thinking of something. "Sounds like you two have quite the history together, but neither of you can see the good in each other."

"There's a lot of bad blood between us." I admitted. "Right now I don't see how I can ever make that part of my past right."

"Maybe I have an idea how." She said as she got up. "Come with me."

I ended up following Tifa through a great deal of the city, passing through sections I hadn't really gone through before. We slipped through alleys and leapt over fences before we got to the suburbs. Once there, Tifa had us hide behind a corner while she motioned for me to take a look.

As I peeked around the corner I found myself shocked at what I saw. Down in an old lady's garden was Aurora, pulling out the weeds and making the humble little patch seem beautiful. "I never saw her do something like that for anyone. Maybe I did, but I don't remember."

"Maybe because you weren't looking for it." Tifa said as we moved away from the area. "I think she has a good heart but doesn't know how to show it."

"Well, Morugans like her weren't really treated well after the war."

"That probably explains it." She then looked at me and I thought she would want an explanation. "Do you truly want to help her avoid the mistakes you made when you were starting out? Will you fight with every fiber of your being to shed the mistakes of your past and become someone better?"

Looking at her, I said, "That's what I was trying to do this whole time. And if I haven't done it yet then I'll keep fighting until I get there."

That brought a smile to her face. "Then we'd better find Scrooge. We need to let him know we'll be traveling with him."

"We? You're coming?"

"Of course. How else will I be able to teach you to fight?"

"Wait. What?"

She then looked at me with a smile. "Congratulations. As of right now you are my student."

Later that day I was sitting in the Gummi ship waiting for us to take off. Scrooge had heartily agreed to pilot the ship again and Tifa accepted to pay the charges of our expedition. With Jiminy sitting on my shoulder it almost felt like old times again.

Except Clair wasn't here. Cuz, I hope you're okay wherever you are. I'm sorry about what happened, but I'll learn to fight without my Keyblade and then I'll come and find you.

"What are you doing here?" Turning in my seat my jaw dropped as I saw Aurora had come aboard. "Tifa said this was where I needed to come to travel to other worlds with her."

"Wait. Tifa said that? But…"

"Why does that shock you? I am her student after all."

That made me fall out of my seat. "What? But Tifa agreed to make me her student."

"What?!" With that she picked up her stuff and turned to leave only to be blocked by our teacher. "Out of my way."

"What's wrong?" Tifa asked.

Glaring at her, Aurora answered, "I'm not going to be training alongside him. I don't want to share a universe with that jerk! Now get out of my way."

Tifa moved to clear the path for her, but kept a smile on her face. "Okay. I just thought you'd relish the opportunity to show your rival up in training. What better way to prove you're the better warrior than to out-train him? But if you don't want the chance to make him feel bad, then feel free to-"

Before she could finish Aurora did a u-turn and moved to a seat. "I'm only staying to humiliate you." She said as she turned away from me.

We sat in silence until my friend took the controls. "Scrooge McDuck to launch control. We are ready for liftoff." He said into the radio.

"Launch control to Scrooge McDuck. You are clear for takeoff." A voice said over the speakers. With that the window began counting down. I braced myself until the numbers reached zero, and then with a blast we left Radiant Garden behind. I smiled upon seeing the familiar sight of the Starocean, or the Lanes Between. Still haven't been able to figure out the proper name for this in-between realm.

I heard Aurora give a small gasp. "What is this?"

"This is an in-between place." I explained. "The space between the world-"

"I wasn't asking you."

* * *

Two days later…

I forgot how long traveling could take to get to the other worlds. Must've been due to the use of the Tesseract. No matter. We got here and that's what was important. What was impressive was that Aurora and I didn't tear each other apart, though we had come close to it when we had to blast that squadron of Heartless on our way here.

"What happened to our clothes?" Aurora asked as she looked over herself. I noticed that now she was wearing a light blue martial arts shirt with white lines, and black pants that matched her. Instead of boots now she had knee-high socks and black shoes.

Looking down at myself, I saw I was also in similar attire, except my shirt was dark blue with red lines, and my pants were a lighter shade. "Guess you got the spell too."

"Wait. You mean when Merlin waved his stick over me?"

"Yep. He says it's to help us blend in so we don't attract unwanted attention."

"B-b-but… this is like ancient Morugan wear."

I had to agree with her there. Our clothes did seem reminiscent of old pictures I had seen of Morugan culture long before the kaiju awakened. Was this a world that was similar to what that country used to be? If Madsane found out about this place I was certain it would not last long.

"Maybe keep it a little down." Tifa said as she walked up to us. "Just in case anyone could be listening."

Looking around, I saw we were in a vast field that seemed to spread as far as the eye could see. "There's no one else here."

"Wait. Why didn't you and Scrooge change appearances?" Aurora asked.

With a smile, the old duck answered, "Oh, that's easy lass. We didn't get the enchantment. Don't need it."

"Thanks a lot."

"Hey guys!" A new voice called out. Turning, I saw the familiar figures of Sora, Donald, and Goofy running towards us from what seemed to be a large camp. Wait. How did they get here before us? "Glad you could make it. Welcome to the Land of Dragons."

"The Land of Dragons?" My rival looked around. "That's what this place is called?"

"You get used to it." I told her.

"I didn't ask you."

"Come on. Shang's waiting for you." With that the trio led us into the camp they came from. I noticed a golden flag flying that had a red serpentine creature embroidered on it. Was that the sigil of this world? Why were dragons such a big deal to these people? The last one I saw wasn't very friendly.

Our predecessors stopped when we got close to a man in armor with a red cape flowing behind him. What surprised me was this man looked like he was from Moruga, and as a result kind of confirmed my suspicions from before. "These are the warriors you spoke of?"

"Yep. They were chosen by the Keyblade just like Sora." Goofy smiled as he gestured to us.

My rival then had to ruin it. "I have the Keyblade. Jason's ditched him."

"What?" The captain didn't seem happy about that. "Why did you bring them here?"

"Remember what we told you about a new threat that's rebuilding the Organization?" The spikey-haired hero asked. "Their home was the first to be destroyed. If they're not ready more people will be hurt like before."

Donald then added in, "The Emperor already agreed to let them train here. And we'll be helping out too."

This guy, Shang, thought about it as he looked over us. "They're rough. I'd be reluctant to train them as soldiers. But since the Emperor has decreed this to be a secret mission, and they have Keyblades like you Sora I will find honor in teaching them."

I raised an eyebrow at that. Honor? What was that? Turning to Tifa, I prepared to ask what about her promise to train us when she held a hand up to motion for me to be quiet. Guess I'll have to ask her later.

"Very well." Shang said as he looked at the two of us. "You two will assemble here swiftly each and every morning. As of this moment you will be trained as if you were joining the Emperor's army."

"Sounds like Jason made his goal after all. Joining a military force." Aurora said out loud.

"Not now." I frowned at her.

"What's the matter? Afraid you'll fall out of favor?"

"That's enough." The captain glared at her. "You may be a woman but here you will be treated like any other soldier. You will train together, you will work together, and you will triumph or fall together. I promise that before you leave I will make a warrior out of you."

* * *

**I did try reading this chapter out loud to myself to see how it sounded, and it's amazing how different something reads when you read it out loud to yourself. I may do that more often in the future because it helped me a lot here. **

**I know Aurora seems really mean but that's because she wasn't treated nicely growing up. All her life she was treated as inferior because she's Morugan. It tends to make one bitter. Part of the reason for this story is to try and help soften her heart, heal the pain that she's too used to by now. **

**Flautist4ever and I were talking about having her dress in a green sweater and giving her purple hair, but I was still seeing artwork of her with black hair and a blue sweater so I decided to write her as such here. Plus I didn't want to make Flautist4ever redo the cover image. Be sure to thank her for it as it was an entry for Musical May. **

**I hope this chapter was worth the wait for you. I'm sorry to make you wait again, but I want to help get the story involving Braxton and co. ready. Hopefully you'll enjoy that one as well. I will say it will be published as one of Flautist4ever's stories since those are her characters. Be sure to keep an eye out. **

**Also, I decided to make Tifa a new mentor for Jason because I think her fighting style would go well with Jason's character. I did play the remake of Final Fantasy VII to try and get a better understanding of her character. There were some screenshots that explained some moves of hers that could help expand the roster of moves beyond Somersault and Final Heaven. I just need to look them up. Overall, I can see her acting as the older sister for these two. **

**Until next time, stay safe and awesome.**

**Edit 5/15/2020: Received a new cover based on a new design for Aurora, so description was updated. **


End file.
